Graduation Year

2024

Date of Submission

4-2024

Document Type

Campus Only Senior Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts

Department

Economics

Reader 1

David Bjerk

Rights Information

© 2024 Madison Stephenson

Abstract

This study investigates the relationship between police force size and homicide clearance rates. Using data from Jacob Kaplans’s Crime Data Tool, The Federal Reserve Economic Data (FRED) and the FBI Crime Data Explorer, I create two datasets that represent most of the 50 largest police departments in the nation in the years 2012-2022. The first dataset only includes departments with complete data for all ten years under investigation. The second includes a department with complete data for any of the ten years. I employ an ordinary least squares (OLS) regression model for both datasets. The regression results of the model suggests that there is a negative statistically significant relationship between total officers in a police department and homicide clearance rates. It also demonstrates that there is a statistically significant relationship between lagged homicide rates and lagged homicide clearance rates on current homicide clearance rates.

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This thesis is restricted to the Claremont Colleges current faculty, students, and staff.

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